Tractors, Mowers, Chippers, Trailers, Chainsaws, Generators, Driveway Erosion Control, ETC.

50 hour service completed with new hydraulic filter and air ride seat.

https://youtu.be/WmlNlUrqXGg









Seat made in England, explains the backorder and $700 cost ..

 

The svl95 had problems with the wiring harness. My son works for a kubota dealership and replaced a few. The svl75 seems to be their best one, nice looking.

 

Yeah I spoke to a couple mechanics at different dealers before I ordered one.

 

Hey folks,
Hoping to get some direction on my less than one year old Honda HRN 216.

I hit an immovable object (about a 10 foot length of mostly buried flat stock about 3-4 inches wide. Looks to be an old barn door runner). It knocked the air filter cover off & gouged the blade really good. It was definitely out of balance when I turned it off.

I checked the block and it’s holding oil. I put a replacement Honda blade on hoping that would be it but nope. It’s still running like it’s out of balance.

Any thoughts on how to further diagnose? TIA

 

Is the shaft the blade bolts to, bent? Maybe so slightly that you can't see it?

 

Me too. I was in heaven going to the backpack sprayer but still a lot of sweaty trudging work with it. This thing was effortless.

 

Check and see if the shaft is bent:

1) Remove the blade
2) Clean the shaft with a wire brush, scotchbrite, sandcloth, etc
3) Make a stationary pointer with a nail and a stand of wood or coat hanger wire -- doesn't really matter what you use just as long as you can get it to stay in one place close to (almost touching) the now clean shaft
4) Rotate the engine over slowly while observing the distance between your pointer and the shaft

If the shaft is true the distance will stay the same, if it is bent you will see it.

 

You are doing this except with a pointer instead of a dial indicator.

 

Might be easier if you take the plug out. Won't have to work against the compression of the engine.

 

Crank is bent, depending on how handy you are, could get expensive. I've seen some mower shops able to straiten them while on the mower, but not sure how well that works. Crank looks to be a $60-$70 part.

Those mowers are hard to readily get now for some reason. I have the same exact model I bought in 2021 and the store had plenty of them. Now they're pretty scarce.

 

Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking. I did @RustyGreen ’s test and it’s definitely out.

Surprised there’s no shear bolt or similar that would prevent this amount of damage .

Where did you find the crank price?

Thanks!

 

I typed in "GCV 170" in the search on Jack's Small Engines and it gave me a list. Quickly looking through the list it looked like that was the one. You'll have to find the exact engine model to be sure.

Replacing the crank isn't that bad of a job, just kinda tedious on that small of engine. Shouldn't need to take the head off or piston out, just scooch it up outta the way. But, the last crank I did was on an old flat head Tecumseh if I recall correctly.

 

I'd cruise FB marketplace for something with the same motor and swap it if it were me. Time and effort to swap a crank on a push mower seems to exceed the value IMO. Not to mention, you can probably get the donor cheaper than the crank itself anyways.

Sell the broken one on FBM for beer money, call it fixed.

 

I'm not going to recommend this or even suggest that it might work...

I knew a guy who figured:
1) it was already broken
2) an impact bent it therefore another might "fix" it.

Using the previously discussed pointer he corrected the bend with a hammer padded with a block of wood to protect the shaft -- it worked.

Again, proceed at your own risk, one hillbilly hack repair doesn't make it an authorized repair method. The mower in the above was 20 years old, yours is almost new, probably better to just fix it correctly.

 

There is a shear key in the flywheel, however it isn't (obviously) 100% protection. It more functions to protect the crank from twisting and snapping rather than bending.

 

Thanks for the perspective.

Though I didn’t grow up during the depression, neither did my parents. It was my grandparents who instilled the subsequent 2 generations of yankee frugalness that prevents me from bailing on a less than one year old mower.

 

Not suggesting we bail on this job at all lol.

Why pay $60 for a part when you can get a whole motor for $50 or less? It just seems like basic math at this point. Besides, what else do you actually need to fix it?

I won't even get into the time factor.

For example, lots of pressure washers out there that run this same motor. Lots of pressure washers on FBM that have bad pumps and good motors for very little $$$ since most people don't properly winterize their pressure washers, busting the pumps. My Troy Bilt mower runs the same Honda Motor as well, so lots of brands out there to choose from.

Salvaging your mower by buying a broken donor seems to me to epitomize "Yankee Frugality" IMO lol.

I just did this with 2 FBM Crapsman's I picked up.


I also made $30 when I scrapped the old mower parts and some other junk metal I had.

 

Thanks again. Economics up here in Northern NH would negate me recuperating any sort of salvage value in this project.

 

The only problem i see with that is, those motors have a helluva lot more hours on them than the motor he's got with the bent crank. I'd put the effort into a low hour engine than risk an unknown one. Just my personal opinion.

 

I just hauled a Honda engine to the scrap yard last week, if I hadn’t I would have taken the crank out and sent it to you for free to see if it would work